Chapter 121

【Hint: Congratulations on obtaining four wisps of Mother Qi of Mediation, to be collected after the ten-year simulation ends.】

The light screen of the Great Cauldron slowly froze.

Yu Ke's eyes widened; he had harvested four wisps of Mother Qi.

This was truly off the charts!

The trip to the capital had been incredibly profitable.

By now!

He already had ten wisps of Mother Qi of Mediation, which far exceeded his previous gains.

Yu Ke looked forward intensely to the harvest after this simulation ended.

Let's see if he could succeed in Foundation Establishment this time!

Run one Great Circulation and strike the Shentian acupoint.

He must act with caution!

He could not take risks like his predecessor without ninety percent certainty.

What difference was that from courting death?

But then again!

This time, the Mother Qi of Mediation was obtained after the death of the Emperor, Zhou Zhen.

Combined with the experience of the Emperor's collapse at Mount Zhongnan, he had also obtained Mother Qi there.

It seems!

There are two possibilities for triggering this Mother Qi.

First: The death of a Grandmaster.

Second: The death of an Emperor, or the death of someone with great power.

There is also a prerequisite: "Lu Chen" must be nearby to obtain it.

Yu Ke pondered slightly, then stopped worrying and beamed with joy.

He looked forward to the harvest tomorrow night when the simulation ended!

After a day's absence, one should look at each other with new eyes!

As the simulation continued!

【You watched calmly as Zhou Zhen died.】

【Above the steps, the Emperor of Great Qing was dead.】

【He died on the steps of the Fengtian Hall, before the ancestral tablets.】

【Those who play with power are destined to die by power.】

【In the ranks of the Jin Wuwei, the warriors who had lost their backbone trembled, looking at the cold corpses of Dong Jie and Zhou Zhen. The beliefs in their hearts collapsed with a roar; some chose to die to prove their loyalty, while others looked up to the sky, their tears mixed with unwillingness and despair, sobbing uncontrollably.】

【You watched coldly from the sidelines.】

【The struggle for power in every dynasty is stained with blood and piled with white bones; who is ever spared?】

【With the Emperor's collapse, only two forces remained.】

【The Empress Dowager stared at you fixedly, her eyes full of deep-seated resentment and unwillingness; she blamed all this suffering on you alone.】

【The old burying the young, losing both son and grandson—how could the sorrow ever end?】

【"Lu Chen, why don't you just die!"】

【The old woman gripped the armrest of the phoenix carriage tightly, her knuckles turning white with anger, her desolate voice piercing through the palace and halls, echoing for a long time.】

【"My son died at Mount Zhongnan, Great Qing is falling apart, and now you have cut off my grandson's path. Could it be that you truly wish to take this vast empire into your own embrace?!"】

【"Lu Chen, you are the greatest thief of the state in this world."】

【Hearing this, Lu Lu tried to remain calm on the surface, but his heart was already surging like the sea, especially when he recalled the might of the Lu Family Army—defeating the many with the few, never having known defeat—which added to his worries.】

【His gaze shifted, and he secretly thought to himself, deeply understanding that one must not put all their eggs in one basket and must reserve a way out.】

【Lu Lu's attachment to the Empress Dowager was merely an expedient measure because the Son of Heaven was weak, but now the wind had shifted.】

【As the saying goes, a wise man avoids a dangerous wall, and a good bird chooses its tree to nest in.】

【After a brief moment of losing control, the Empress Dowager regained her royal demeanor, calmed down, and her shrill cries turned into a deep, resolute silence.】

【Finally!】

【The old woman, with eyes that had seen all the vicissitudes of life, looked at you and said: "Lu Chen, what is it that you truly seek? Just say it, and this Dowager can grant it all."】

【"There is only one thing: the position of the Son of Heaven must be inherited by my Zhou family bloodline. This is the bottom line that cannot be crossed. I will grant you titles and ranks, supreme prominence, and let you hold power over a region."】

【Her words were resonant, like a player's final gamble on the chessboard.】

【Zhou Jinyu stood quietly behind the Empress Dowager, her face a mixture of tension and expectation.】

【"You, where will you go from here?"】

【This was not only a soft question in Zhou Jinyu's heart, but also a heavy stone in the hearts of everyone present.】

【Ten thousand eyes were focused on you alone.】

【Are you going to become the master of Great Qing, or do you have other schemes?】

【The Empress Dowager had already lost!】

【How will you settle accounts with the royal nobility? These questions were like sharp swords hanging in the air, making people afraid to breathe easily.】

【Zhou Jinyu felt no fear in her heart; she had long since put life and death aside.】

【Back when the Northern Wind and Great Qing were allied through marriage!】

【She had already viewed herself as duckweed in the wind, with life and death determined by fate.】

【From that moment on, she had no right to choose her destiny, only a destiny to be chosen!】

【She imagined that if you were like those rebellious ministers in history, treating the Emperor's harem as your private property, then what fate would she, as the Empress of Great Qing, face?】

【There was a ripple in her heart!】

【Lu Lu, standing to the side, couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief after hearing this dialogue. He knew that as long as both sides could sit down and negotiate, there was always a possibility of a solution.】

【In a real all-out fight, he might not even have a chance to surrender!】

【The generals of the Lu Family Army, although they already had their guesses, still harbored a faint, imperceptible expectation, their eyes burning like torches.】

【You stood on your horse.】

【At this moment, everyone was waiting for your decision.】

【Lu Yu seemed to have long since perceived your thoughts, a faint smile on his face.】

【He remembered the days of cultivating the Dao at Mount Zhongnan, watching the persimmons turn red and the forests dyed in layers; at that time, his elder brother's smile seemed more frequent than when they were heading north.】

【Zhou Cheng's face was also as calm as an ancient well; he could accept any outcome in his heart.】

【Moreover, he knew in his heart that this Shaobao's heart was not here.】

The light screen above the Great Cauldron flowed and slowly paused!

【Facing this situation... and so, you decide.】

1. Ascend the throne and become Emperor. (Hint: Not a very good choice; the timing is not right, and there is a probability of subsequent conflicts among subordinates, leading to an alliance of other countries.)

2. Choose Zhou Cheng to ascend the throne. (Hint: This will also cause certain rebellions later, with a chance of leading to an alliance of other countries.)

3. Choose the Empress Dowager to govern. (Hint: This may cause even greater riots later.)

4. Choose to assist Zhou Jinyu's son to succeed to the throne. (Hint: If chosen, you will most likely win Zhou Jinyu's heart, be able to stabilize the situation in a short time, and there is a partial chance of leading to an alliance of other countries.)

5. Participate personally. (1/3)

Yu Ke looked at the five options that popped up all at once, nodded slightly, and couldn't help but stroke his chin.

"Should I ascend the throne?"

This was a question he had been thinking about ever since the simulation reached the point of entering the palace.

Every choice represented a change in Lu Chen's life trajectory thereafter.

Just like life itself, different choices create different lives.

Every choice is very important.

Especially this "ascending the throne," as the master of Great Qing.

It is definitely a major event in Lu Chen's life.

Fortunately, after "A-Ding" evolved, there is a "hint" after every option.

Otherwise!

Yu Ke would still find it difficult to grasp the situation.

Previous simulations had already informed him that the Empress of Qianyuan and Zhou Xuan of Hexi had already joined forces to attack the capital.

The Northern Wind was also eyeing them covetously.

The intentions of the Han and Chu states were unclear.

What if "four countries attacked at the same time, pushing Great Qing off the table"?

The crisis would follow immediately.

To resist foreign aggression, one must first stabilize the interior!

Although Yu Ke had a main thread in his heart, Lu Chen, as Shaobao, had already been cultivating the Dao at Mount Zhongnan for fifteen years.

He had great prestige in the North because the North had been in war for twenty years, and the hearts of the people had submitted.

But in the prosperous land of Jiangnan, Lu Chen still lacked true prestige.

After all!

Great Qing had been raising scholars for four hundred years, and the literati and noble clans controlled the propaganda.

If Lu Chen forcibly ascended the throne, it would likely lead to a bloodbath, and Jiangnan might fall into chaos again!

Most importantly!

Lu Chen had now taken over this "mess of Great Qing," and the energy invested would be enormous, which would affect his cultivation.

Great Qing had been at peace for too long.

It was better to let the people of Jiangnan govern Jiangnan and install his own trusted aides—that was the best choice.

Among the five options, Yu Ke discarded the first one.

The third option, the Empress Dowager, was also excluded.

The second and fourth options both had hints that the final result could lead to an alliance of other countries.

The country that Zhou Jinyu might ally with could be the Northern Wind.

As for the country that Zhou Cheng might ally with later, who knows?

This Prince Jing occupied the North of the River, and if he allied, the danger would be greater than Zhou Jinyu.

Comparing the two!

Choosing to assist Zhou Jinyu's son to succeed to the throne seemed a bit better; the hint also added "stabilize the situation in a short time."

Among them was also "Zhou Jinyu's heart."

Yu Ke was a bit confused about what kind of complex relationship the Emperor and his wife had.

The last option, participate personally!

Even if he participated personally.

He didn't think he had forty years more experience in military strategy than Lu Chen and the others!

That was also excluded!

After organizing his many thoughts, Yu Ke resolutely chose!

4. Choose to assist Zhou Jinyu's son to succeed to the throne. (Hint: If chosen, you will most likely win Zhou Jinyu's heart, be able to stabilize the situation in a short time, and there is a partial chance of leading to an alliance of other countries.)

With the choice made.

The simulation continued!

【You stared at the varied expressions of the people around you, their gazes weaving into a web, complex and unfathomable.】

【The Empress Dowager, that old woman who had experienced all the vicissitudes of life, had eyes that were exceptionally bright at this moment, and the armrest she gripped tightly was her only reliance and support.】

【She did not believe that anyone in the world could refuse the throne that was within reach; her own son and grandson had turned against each other for this divine artifact, forgetting the bonds of brotherhood.】

【The group of subordinates also had burning gazes.】

【Lu Lu and the others also had quite nervous expressions; a single word from you could determine the life or death of too many people.】

【The feeling of having one's life and death controlled by others is not pleasant.】

【You did not speak!】

【In this late autumn season, the weather was cold, but fine beads of sweat seeped out on the foreheads of the soldiers.】

【This was not only because of nervousness, but also because they knew deeply that a single word from you could determine their life or death.】

【This is the tyranny of imperial power; it is like a sharp sword hanging over everyone's head, making people both yearn for it and fear it.】

【At this moment!】

【The entire palace was stained with blood, the stench was overwhelming, tens of thousands of people had died, and there were pairs of eyes that could not be closed.】

【Countless hands were at the top of these layers of corpses, crowding around a throne.】

【It seemed you were the final winner!】

【However!】

【There was not the slightest trace of joy on your face; it was like a pool of still water, without a ripple.】

【You spoke slowly, your voice not loud but clearly audible, calm and firm:】

【"I was originally a commoner from Huainan; what does the world have to do with me?"】

【Hearing this, Lu Yu revealed a smile on his face!】

(End of this chapter)